Pentagon secretly installs military influencers in civilian roles: Washington Post
Pentagon records show the hires were labeled civilian employees, while officials declined to say whether they are paid by taxpayers or what roles they hold.
- On Sunday, The Washington Post reported that the Pentagon secretly installed several conservative military veterans into civilian roles to amplify Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's viewpoints and "attack those who scrutinize the Trump administration."
- Retired Air Force Colonel Rob Maness and retired Army Colonel Kurt Schlichter, with more than 135,000 and nearly 620,000 followers respectively, were labeled with a ".civ" suffix, designating them as civilian employees rather than contractors.
- Pentagon records indicate these individuals, including retired Army Colonel Thomas Anderson, hold official email addresses and report to the office of Anthony Tata, the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, though officials declined to disclose their specific government duties.
- Political analysts and public figures expressed outrage, with political writer Jim Stewartson calling the operation "a roundabout way to use taxpayer money to pay for psyops against taxpayers" in a post on Sunday.
- The Pentagon refuses to disclose assignment details despite the Trump administration's claims that it operates the "most transparent Defense Department ever," raising concerns about government resources used for partisan messaging.
18 Articles
18 Articles
Pentagon Hires Pro-Hegseth Influencers Without Disclosing Their Government Roles
Washington, D.C. — The Pentagon has quietly hired several conservative military veterans with large social media followings for civilian government positions while the same figures publicly promote Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s policies, according to The Washington Post. Pentagon records reviewed by the newspaper showed retired Air Force Col. Rob Maness and retired Army Col. Kurt Schlichter with active government email accounts assigned to th…
The US government must take a lot of criticism, especially because of the Iran war. Now the Pentagon apparently hires veterans for the information war.
The Pentagon secretly uses military influencers as government officials – and is silent about their duties. An analysis.
Several large-scale conservative military veterans appear to be working in civilian roles for the U.S. Department of Defense. The Pentagon does not disclose its tasks.
It has been revealed that U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth secretly hired right-wing former military influencers into the Department of Defense to mobilize them for the culture war being waged within the military. Citing multiple sources on the 30th (local time), the Washington Post reported that the Department of Defense recently hired three right-wing former military figures with tens of thousands of followers.
Outrage after MAGA influencers secretly hired at the Pentagon: 'We are so screwed'
Political analysts and observers were outraged on Sunday after The Washington Post uncovered a MAGA influence operation being conducted inside the Pentagon. The Post reported, citing people familiar with the operation, that the Pentagon hired several MAGA influencers as employees to amplify Pete Hegseth's viewpoints and to "attack those who scrutinize the Trump administration." Two of the hires mentioned in the report are Rob Maness, a retired A…
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- 50% of the sources lean Left
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